A Very Special Christmas
by Epeefencer
Summary: Harry awakens somewhere besides his cupboard and it seems that Christmas wishes can come true.


**A Very Special Christmas**

Ten year old Harry Potter sighed deeply. He was settling in for his normal Christmas Eve and Day. See, Harry didn't get to celebrate Christmas like everyone else.

No, Harry lived with his Aunt, Uncle and cousin and they didn't like Harry at all, in fact they hated him because he was different, strange and according to them, a freak.

Not that Harry tried to be different, quite the contrary, he tried his hardest to be as normal as possible so that he could escape the punishments handed out by his relatives.

As long as he could remember he had been receiving punishments for all the strange things that seemed to happen around him whenever he felt threatened or afraid. The only exception seemed to be when his Aunt or Uncle were the ones doing the punishing.

So it was that Harry found himself locked in the cupboard under the stairs on Christmas Eve listening to his relatives making merry in the sitting room.

It saddened Harry to be excluded from the festivities and he once again found himself wishing that he could just once have a Christmas like everyone else did.

Laying back and closing his eyes, he whispered, "Please, just once, can't I have a Happy Christmas?"

Sighing once again, Harry let himself relax and as he tried to ignore the sounds coming through the grate, he felt himself drifting off to sleep.

**XX HP + GW XX**

It was much later when Harry became aware that there were voices that he didn't recognize whispering near him.

"Mum, who is he?" said a voice that definitely belonged to a young girl.

"I don't know," he heard a woman reply.

"What's he doing here?" said a boys voice.

"I don't know," replied the woman.

"Should we wake him?" the young girl asked.

Though Harry tried to remain still, his body betrayed him and he stretched and yawned mightily.

"It looks like we won't have to," the woman said in a very warm, inviting tone.

Seeing that they knew he was awake, Harry sat up and looked around. His eyes widened in shock! He definitely wasn't at his relatives any more. The scene that he took in was totally different as it could be from #4 Privet Drive as it possibly could be.

There were things everywhere, and the most impressive were the Christmas decorations that seemed to be hung and placed on every conceivable surface in the room. Evergreens were draped across the fireplace mantle, accented with big red bows.

Paper chains hung around the perimeter of the room along with so many ornaments that glittered and flashed as if by magic.

Lastly, Harry took in the magnificent Christmas tree that was so densely decorated that it was hard to see the green of the tree. On the top was the strangest Angel that Harry had ever seen, its face looking like a potato and as he stared at it, he was sure it was frowning at him and he swore he saw the eyes blink.

"Hello, dear," he heard, making him turn and look at the woman. "My name is Molly and who might you be?"

"I'm Harry," he replied softly, staring up into the kindest face he had ever laid eyes on.

"Well, Harry, how did you get here?" Molly asked.

"I don't know," Harry replied. "Last I knew I was in my cupboard."

"You live in a cupboard?" asked the young girl, frowning.

"Ginny, that's enough," said Molly, gently.

She then looked back at Harry, "We were about to have breakfast, why don't you come out into the kitchen and join us."

Harry rose and immediately Ginny darted forward and grabbed his hand, pulling him toward the doorway. "Come on, Mum makes the best breakfast on Christmas morning," she said gleefully.

"Percy, go wake your brothers and tell them breakfast in 5 minutes," Molly said to the red-haired boy who was standing there.

"Yes mother," Percy said, rather formally.

As the four of them entered the kitchen, Percy headed up the stairs and Molly, Ginny and Harry entered the kitchen.

Ginny led Harry to the table and sat him down, then proceeded to pour him some juice but it was unlike any juice he'd ever had before. He tentatively took a sip and though it was different, he found that he liked it very much.

"What kind of juice is this?" he asked Ginny.

Ginny looked at him strangely, "It's pumpkin juice, silly," she said with a smile. "Don't tell me you've never had pumpkin juice before?" she asked incredulously.

Blushing slightly, Harry said, "No, I've never had it before."

Ginny rolled her eyes but before she could say anything Percy returned followed by another red-haired boy. He was a little shorter but much more muscular.

"Ron and the twins will be right down," Percy said as he sat down.

The other boy looked questioningly at Harry as he came into the room. Since Ginny was serving him he said good naturedly to Molly, "And you jump on me when I bring strange animals home."

"That will be enough of that, Charlie," Molly said, sternly.

Charlie winked at Ginny as he came around the table, "Sure thing, mum," he said as he ruffled Harry's hair as he passed.

Ginny's eyes widened as Harry's fringe parted, revealing his scar. Since she was the only one looking at him, no one else noticed.

"What?" Harry asked, in response to her look.

"N-nothing," Ginny stammered, not believing her eyes.

Harry was about to press her for an explanation when there was a thunderous commotion on the stairs. Three more red-haired boys appeared, pushing and shoving, each trying to be the first to the table.

"FRED, GEORGE, RON," Molly shouted. "Enough of that! Take your seats or there will be no breakfast for any of you."

Aww, Mum," one of the Twins said.

"Don't you Aww Mum me, Fred" Molly retorted, shaking her spatula at him.

While Molly was scolding the boys, Harry continued to look at Ginny, who was now blushing heavily. She was saved by George, the second twin. "Hey, who is Ginny's friend?" he asked.

Everyone now focused their attention on Harry and it was his turn to blush deeply, feeling very embarrassed at being unable to explain his presence.

The tension was broken by the door opening and a red-haired man came in. He was smiling brightly and had a ruddy complexion from being outside in the cold.

Molly's attention was immediately focused on him. "Just where have you been?" she asked.

The colour on the man's cheeks deepened. "I've been out for a walk," he said somewhat defensively.

Molly snorted a laugh, "You can't fool me, Arthur. You've been out in your shed with your muggle things."

Harry didn't believe it could have been possible, but the colour of the man's cheeks deepened further.

"Ah. . . yes . . . well. . . ." he stammered.

Everyone burst out laughing, including Arthur, though Harry had no idea what she had meant by muggle.

Suddenly Arthur noticed the addition to the family gathering. "Well, who do we have here?" he asked pleasantly.

Ginny spoke before anyone else, "This is Harry," she said as an introduction.

"Well, it's nice of you to join us," Arthur said. He then looked at his wife questioningly.

Harry noticed her mouth silently, "Later," which garnered a nod from the man.

Within what seemed just moments the table was piled high with all sorts of delectable foods. There were rashers of bacon, eggs of several sorts, sausages, waffles, porridge, toast and a bunch of other dishes.

As the platters were passed around, Harry took extremely small portions of everything, garnering a frown from Ginny. "Is that all you're taking?" she asked, looking quite perturbed.

Harry just shrugged, "At home, I'm not allowed a lot," he said softly.

Ginny made a funny face and began to pile food onto Harry's plate. "I don't know where you come from, but here we can eat as much as we like."

Harry had never eaten as much as he did now. He wouldn't have believed it if he had not done it. Not only did Ginny pile seconds onto his plate, but he did have thirds of several of the dishes.

"There, that's better," Ginny said with a smile. "Someone as young as you needs to eat more."

Ginny thought that Harry was younger than she was because of how small and skinny he was, not aware that he was actually a year older than she was.

Once breakfast was over and the table cleared, the group rose and headed into the parlour for Christmas and the opening of presents.

They were just getting settled when there was the sound of the back door opening and someone entering. Before anyone could get up or say anything another red-haired person entered the room.

"Surprise!" he yelled out.

"William!" Molly exclaimed.

""I was able to get off at the last minute and just had to be here for Christmas," Bill said with a grin.

He was making his way around the room, shaking hands and giving out hugs when his eyes fell upon Harry. "Well, here's someone that I don't recognize," he said, smiling at him.

"I'm Harry."

"Well nice to meet you, Harry," Bill said, shaking his hand.

After they had all settled down, Ginny began to hand out the presents under the tree. Harry watched in awed fascination as gift after gift was presented to the proper recipient.

Though there was nothing for Harry, that didn't bother him. He was just surprised at the quantity of gifts for each person. Harry eyed the jumpers that each of the children received with a look of longing. He also took note that most of the gifts were homemade, except for the luscious chocolates that all the kids received.

Ginny could tell that Harry had never seen a Chocolate frog before so she offered him one of hers.

Harry looked at it in surprise, then showing off his reflexes by snatching it out of the air as it tried to hop away from him. He stared at the card it contained but he didn't say anything about it.

Ginny glanced at it over Harry's arm, "Dumbledore, I have plenty of him."

When the others realized that Harry didn't have any Chocolate Frog Cards they all gave him their duplicates so that Harry ended up with about a dozen.

Ginny loved the way his face lit up when he realized that he was going to be able to keep the cards for his very own.

"My first Christmas gifts," he said softly to himself.

At first Ginny thought he meant today, but then by the look on his face, she realized that he was talking about ever. She looked beseechingly at her mother who smiled and gave her a nod. When Harry wasn't looking she summoned a jumper from upstairs and transformed it into a beautiful shade of emerald green with a gold H on the front. Then with a flick of her wand it was wrapped and placed way back under the tree.

Ginny smiled and said "Look, Mum! There is one more present under the tree!"

Returning her smile, Molly said "Why so there is, why don't you see who it is for."

Ginny hurried and retrieved the package. "It's for Harry," she said with a smile.

Harry was shocked and sat there wide-eyed as Ginny brought him the present. He sat there staring at it for several moments. Ginny ended up giving him a nudge before he began to open it.

The smile that burst forth on Harry's face squeezed the hearts of the two women. "T-thank you," he stammered.

Happy Christmas," Molly said, her smile matching his own.

"Yes, Happy Christmas, Harry," Ginny said, giving him a hug, which he returned awkwardly.

He immediately put it on as all the Weasley children were doing, well except Percy, but before long, Bill and Charlie had grabbed Percy and slid his jumper over his head.

Molly noticed the look of longing that crept onto Harry's face as he watched the family interact and she wondered about what his life must be like for him to act like that.

Soon all the presents were opened and the boys began to get restless, and Molly had to yell at them to behave.

"Mum, can we go out and play Quidditch?" George asked.

"After you get dressed," Molly replied. "And all this mess is cleaned up" she added looking at the detritus strewn about the room.

"I'll get it Mum," Bill said, pulling something from the sleeve of his jumper.

"The muggle way," Molly said, frowning.

"Aww, Mum," Ron complained.

"No complaining or there will be no Quidditch for you," she replied sternly.

"Can I play too?" asked Ginny hopefully.

"You're to young, squirt," Bill said. "You're only nine, and Harry must be younger still."

"I'm ten," Harry said defensively. Even though he had no idea what Quidditch was, he wasn't going to let his size deter him.

Bill raised his eyebrows at him and frowned, as was Molly. She couldn't believe that this slight, skinny boy was ten by looking at him. Though she couldn't see any reason for him to be lying.

She was beginning to have a lot of questions about this mysterious young boy who had appeared so unexpectedly, with that becoming the least of them.

In no time at all the boys had come running back down the stairs and headed outside with Ginny and Harry following.

At first, Percy had tried to get out of playing, but Bill and Charlie had each grabbed him by an elbow and told him in no uncertain terms that he was playing, or else!

By the time Harry and Ginny had caught up, the six boys were in the air on their brooms. Harry's eyes were wide with disbelief and he rubbed them a couple of times to make sure he wasn't seeing things.

"Never seen Quidditch before?" Ginny asked him.

"No," replied Harry, trying hard to watch everything at once.

"Ever been up on a broom before?"

"No," he said softly.

Ginny gave him an impish grin. "Come on then," she said, once more grasping his hand and pulling him away.

Harry was reluctant to follow at first, but Ginny was quite insistent and hauled him away from the paddock where the boys were zooming around, well all except Ron, he had just started riding a broom the previous summer and wasn't that adept at it yet, that coupled with the fact he was stuck with the oldest broom, and lets just say, his performance was less than stellar.

Ginny led Harry towards a small shed that may have been a privy at one time. She glanced around to make sure the coast was clear before she opened the door. Inside were a couple more old brooms, well past their prime but still flyable.

"They don't know it, but I've been sneaking out here since I was six and riding their brooms," Ginny said conspiratorially.

Harry watched Ginny in awe as she took two of the brooms and headed away from the paddock.

"Since you've never been on a broom before, I'll give you your first flying lesson," Ginny said with a smile.

"I don't think I'll be able," Harry said sadly.

"Don't say that till you've tried," Ginny said encouragingly.

Harry just shrugged his shoulders, she'd find out soon enough that he couldn't.

Ginny laid the brooms on the ground a couple of feet apart.

"Now just stand to the side, place your hand over the broom like this," she said, demonstrating the proper way.

Reluctantly Harry did as he was told, sad that he was going to fail and disappoint this friendly young girl.

"Okay, now firmly picture the broom rising into your hand, got it?" she said.

Harry envisioned the broom popping into his hand as hard as he could.

"Now firmly say Up!"

Not expecting anything to happen but wishing with all his might, Harry said "Up!"

Much to his surprise the broom smacked him right in the hand. "I did it!" he exclaimed.

Ginny was beaming at him. "I knew you could do it," she said warmly.

She then showed him the proper way to mount the broom and kick off gently. Within minutes they were slowly circling around the small area where they were.

Ginny couldn't believe the smile that came over Harry as he rode the broom with increasing confidence.

Unbeknown to either, Arthur and Molly were watching from the house, smiles on their faces. "How long has Ginny been sneaking out and riding the boys brooms?" Arthur asked.

"At least two years that I know of," Molly answered. "But it must be longer because she was doing quite well when I first saw her."

Harry couldn't believe the feeling of freedom that he was experiencing as he followed Ginny as they zoomed around about ten feet off the ground. He became so excited he couldn't help but do a loop as Ginny closed in on him from behind.

Ginny squealed with delight at Harry's flying. "Are you sure you've never ridden a broom before?" she chided good-naturedly.

"Never!" Harry replied as he did another loop.

"Then you have to be the most natural flyer I've ever heard about," Ginny replied.

Back in the house, Molly almost dropped the mug of tea she was holding as she watched Harry perform the loops.

"Good Merlin!" she exclaimed.

Arthur gave a chuckle, "Seems that our Ginny is a good teacher."

"I'd better never her see her do that!" Molly said.

Arthur laughed as they watched as Ginny followed Harry into another loop. "I hope you had your eyes closed."

Molly's eyes were wide in disbelief as Harry and Ginny flew with ease around the back yard. "If the boys could only see her. . . ." she said wistfully.

"She'll put them in their place when she's ready," Arthur said, smiling as he watched his daughter and her new friend.

"Where do you think he came from?" Molly asked.

"I don't know, but it seems that his magic somehow brought him to us and from the looks of it he needed to be somewhere loving and caring this Christmas," Arthur said softly and a bit sadly.

Molly sighed, "Yes, the looks I've seen on his face say that loud and clear."

**XX HP + GW XX**

It was beginning to grow dark so Harry and Ginny put their brooms away and headed back towards the house. Harry staring up at the odd hodgepodge that was the Burrow, with it's canted and leaning floors and roofs.

Ginny grew concerned for a moment, thinking that he was going to make some kind of disparaging comment, but then with a huge smile he said, "That is the most brilliant house I've ever seen."

Ginny couldn't help but laugh.

"What?" Harry asked.

"To me it's always just been home," she replied, smiling.

Harry sighed and Ginny saw his shoulders slump. It looked like he was about to say something when the boys returned from the direction of the paddock.

"Hey Squirt! I thought you and Harry were going to come watch us play Quidditch?" Bill said with a teasing grin.

"We found something else to do," Ginny retorted.

"What could have been better than watching us play Quidditch?" Charlie asked.

Harry almost lost it when Ginny cheekily replied, "Next time you'll just have to come along with us to find out."

Bill and the others broke out in laughter as Ginny stared defiantly at Charlie. Finally Charlie threw up his hands and said, "Okay, Squirt."

By then they were at the door and everyone filed in. Harry couldn't believe the wondrous aromas that assaulted him. If breakfast had been special, then dinner was going to be spectacular.

"Ginny, why don't you show Harry where to clean up before dinner," Arthur said.

The boys had all headed off up the stairs with Harry and Ginny trailing behind. Ginny had Harry proceed her up the stairs and at that moment, Arthur laid his hand on Ginny's shoulder. Harry slowed down to wait so he got to hear Arthur whisper to Ginny, "That was a wonderful thing you did for Harry this afternoon."

Ginny's eyes widened in shock, "You saw?" she said softly.

"Yes," her father replied with a smile.

"And it's okay?" she asked in disbelief.

"Of course," Arthur said with a small chuckle.

Ginny's demeanour changed immediately and she flung herself at her father, hugging him tightly. "You're the best, dad," she said emotionally.

"So are you, Ginny" he replied, hugging her back, his eyes misting.

**XX HP + GW XX**

If breakfast had been spectacular, dinner was all that and more. Harry had never seen so much food in one place before. There was roast beast, turkey, steak and kidney pie, several kinds of potatoes, parsnips and vegetables and dishes galore.

Ginny made sure that Harry had plenty to eat, piling things on his plate and making him try some of everything.

Once again the chatter around the table was full of good-natured teasing and most of all love. Harry basked in the glow of all the good feelings that were filling the air so thoroughly that they seemed palpable.

Once dinner was cleared away, Molly produced the puddings. Harry was sure that he had died and gone to heaven. There were so many choices and varieties that it made his head spin.

Ginny made sure that he had a taste of each and every one. Harry had never tasted such wonderful desserts. He moaned audibly as he tasted each and every one, causing Ginny to giggle every time he did.

Molly and Arthur watched their daughter with a mixture of pride and amusement. The way she acted with their young visitor, helping and interacted with him. They had never seen her so animated and exuberant.

When dinner was finally over, they all went back into the parlour where Arthur turned on the wireless and they listened to Christmas music.

The kids were playing with their gifts and they enjoyed mugs of hot chocolate and munched on biscuits.

Fred and George were teasing Percy unmercifully, telling him about all the pranks that they were planning on pulling on the staid and uptight boy.

Charlie and Ron were engrossed in a game of chess, with Charlie chuckling every time that he took one of Ron's pieces. Bill was involved in a low conversation with his mother and father, while Harry and Ginny laid in front of the fire and talked lowly.

Harry listened raptly as Ginny regaled him with stories about growing up with six brothers and she did finally get Harry to talk a little about his growing up. She was sure that with the way he was telling the stories that he was leaving a lot out and she wondered why.

Bill looked over at his sister and with a smile said, "Do you think this means she will forget all about her first love, The-Boy-Who-Lived?"

"Who knows," replied Arthur. "This young boy certainly has brought about a big change in her. I've never seen her so enamoured with someone."

"You two," chided Molly. "She's just being nice to this young waif. Did you see the clothes he's wearing?"

Bill frowned. "Do you have any idea where he came from?"

"None what so ever," Arthur replied.

"What's going to happen to him?" Bill asked.

Molly sighed, "Well. . . "

"Mum! You aren't really thinking about keeping him, are you?" Bill asked in disbelief.

"Well, he showed up here for a reason," Molly countered, a bit miffed.

Bill sighed, shaking his head, but a smile creeping onto his face. "Well one thing is for sure, he'll get plenty of love here."

"It appears that he could use it," Arthur added. "I'll check into him at the Ministry next week when things get back to normal."

Just then they were interrupted as Ron groaned and Charlie whooped triumphantly.

"Still trying to beat him?" Bill asked Ron.

"I'll do it if it's the last thing I do," Ron said, dejectedly.

"In your dreams," Charlie said with a grin.

Ron rolled his eyes but stuck out his hand to Charlie, "Good game," he said, admitting his defeat.

Slowly the family began to disperse, with first the Twins going up stairs, followed closely by Percy and Ron.

The wireless was turned low and the music softly filled the room as Charlie and Bill settled in to play chess.

Arthur and Molly sat in their rocking chairs smiling together as they enjoyed the quiet time of the evening.

Harry and Ginny were still ensconced in front of the fire, enjoying more hot chocolate and talking softly.

Neither Molly nor Arthur could hear what was being said, but they smiled when the pair shared soft giggles.

The time stretched out with Bill finally catching a mistake by Charlie and announcing to him "Mate in three."

Charlie studied the board carefully for several moments and then with a sigh, he tipped his King over, signalling his capitulation.

They stood, shook hands and headed off to bed.

Molly and Arthur stood, with Molly waving her wand and making up the couch into a place for Harry to sleep.

"Bed time, you two," Arthur said.

Ginny's and Harry's heads came up, both looking disappointed.

"You'll have time tomorrow to talk more," Molly said softly, her voice warm and full of hope.

Reluctantly, Ginny and Harry rose, both looking at one another for a moment. Ginny then stepped forward and hugged Harry tightly. "Good night, Harry," she whispered.

Harry clung tightly to Ginny, relishing the warmth and love he felt from her. "Good night, Ginny," he whispered back.

Slowly Ginny left and headed up to her room, leaving Molly, Arthur and Harry in the parlour.

Molly pointed to the sofa, ready for Harry. "Sleep well, Harry and we'll talk in the morning," she said softly.

Harry climbed into the covers and looked up at Molly. "Today has been like a dream for me," he said emotionally. "I never knew that having a real family could be so wonderful."

Molly smiled, though her eyes were brimming with tears. "I'm glad you enjoyed yourself," she managed to choke out. "Good night," she whispered as she bent over and kissed him on his brow.

It was after doing so and straightening up, that she noticed the mark upon his forehead. It was a fleeting glance as his fringe flopped back into place so she wasn't 100% sure of what she had seen but it made her breath catch.

If Harry noticed, he didn't give any indication as he rolled over onto his side and pulled the covers up tight to his chin. It seemed in a moment he was fast asleep.

As she and Arthur made their way up to their room, Arthur asked, 'What is it?"

"He has a scar on his forehead," Molly said.

"Was it . . .?" Arthur asked, not being able to bring himself to complete the question.

"I'm not sure," Molly replied.

"We'll check in the morning," Arthur replied.

**XX HP + GW XX**

To Ginny, morning couldn't come fast enough and bright and early before she heard anyone else up, she rose and hurried down stairs. She rushed into the parlour and to her great dismay, Harry's bed was empty.

She felt her heart breaking, she had just found him and now he was gone. She sat down and softly began to cry.

That was where Molly found her a few minutes later.

"He's gone, Mum," Ginny sobbed softly.

Molly sighed and felt her heart break too. "So I see," she answered just as softly to he befrit daughter.

"Will I ever see him again?" Ginny asked imploringly.

A small smile crept onto Molly's face. "I'm pretty sure you will," she replied, somehow knowing that they weren't finished with the young man.

"Come on, let's go make some hot chocolate," Molly said. "It will make you feel better."

A very dejected Ginny followed her Mum into the kitchen, wishing beyond all hope that her mother was right.

**XX HP + GW XX**

Far away, Harry awoke and before he even opened his eyes, he knew he was back in his cupboard.

"Was it all a dream?" he asked himself out low.

Just then there was a noise outside his cupboard door.

"Get up you ungrateful, no good freak!" his Uncle yelled.

Harry rolled out and stood up, surprised by the shocked look on his Uncle's face.

"Where did you get that. . .that jumper!"

Harry looked down at himself and there he saw the emerald green jumper with the gold H emblazoned on it. His eyes widened and he thought to himself, "It wasn't all a dream. It really happened."

His Uncle tried to tear the jumper off of Harry, but it resisted all efforts by the huge man to remove it.

"Fine!" he bellowed, "Keep it!"

Harry smiled softly, he knew in his heart that somehow, he and Ginny would be seeing one another again. For once he had had a Happy Christmas and his relatives couldn't take that gift away from him.

**XX HP + GW XX**

**A/N: A little Christmas gift for all my readers. I hope you enjoyed it. **

**Merry Christmas to you all.**

**Steve**


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